Shoe construction



May 20 1924.

H, HELFANT SHOE CONSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 20. 1.924

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Patented May 20, 1924.

UNITED STATES HENRY HELFANT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

sHon CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed January 20, 1921. Serial No. 438,546.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY HELFANT, a citizen of the United States, and resident of New York, in the county of Queens and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoe Construction, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to shoes.

The object of this invention is the pro vision of strong and durable means capable of being rapidly assembled, for uniting the outer sole and the upper of a shoe without the necessity for stitching the same.

A further object of this invention is the provision of means attached to the upper for removably holding the outer sole and heel therein, whereby said sole and heel may be readily replaced when worn or damaged without disturbing the remainder of the shoe.

A still further object of this invention is the provision of a shoe heel which can be cheaply made and easily replaced.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be in part obvious and in part hereinafter pointed out.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter described and of which the scope of application will be indicated in the'following claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which is shown one of various possible illustrative embodiments of this invention,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a shoe in which my improved device is used;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the inside of.

the toe portion of the shoe;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 showing the sole holding portion of my device as it appears before it has been secured to the upper;

Fig. 4 is a similar view of the same after the sole holder has been secured to the up per, and after the sole has been inserted into the holder therefor; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view and artial section of the heel portion of my device.

In the practical embodiment of my invention, the upper 10 of the usual type, instead of being fastened to the sole by stitching as in the construction now in general use, is secured to a narrow sole holding member 11 shaped to the desired last. This holding member is made preferably Z-shaped in cross section and comprises a narrow horizontal web 12, a downwardly extending flange 13 on the outer peripheral edge of said web, and a serrated upwardly extending flange 14 on the inner peripheral edge thereof. The outer sole 15 of the shoe is fitted inside of the holder 11 as will be clear from Fig. 4. In order to make the holder permanent as to shape and position, while at the same time allowing sufficient flexibility to the shoe, I prefer to make said holder of sheet metal, or any other material, suitable cuts as 16 being made in said holder between the toe and heel portions thereof for forming a number of substantially independent though connected sections, whereby a strong structure, comparatively non-resistant to bending, is provided.

For securing the holder 11 to the upper 10, the edge 17 of said upper is bent inwardly so as to rest on the horizontal web 12 of said holder, while the serrated flange 14 is allowed to project upwardly inside of said upper. By means of a suitable tool, the upstanding prongs 18 of the flange 14 may readily be bent over and clinched down on to said edge, whereby the holder 11 is rapidly and securely attached to the upper.

The outer sole 15 is designed to extend back under the heel (Fig. 5) a suitable casing 19, preferably of light metal being bent around the upper face of said sole, and around the under surface of a heel core 20 made of wood, leather, rubber, or other suitable material. A wearing heel 21, of leather, rubber or other suitable material is attached to the core 20 as by the nails or screws 22.

For fastening the outer sole and heel firmly in the holder, nails or pins 23 are driven through the flange 13 into the edge of the sole. If desired, instead of these nails the flange may be formed with integral pin projections to serve as means for securing the holding members to the sole. When desired, the sole may be readily removed for replacement or repair. The pins 23 are withdrawn or filed, for this purpose, after which the sole may readily be pried out of the holder and a new one substituted. In a similar manner, the wearing heel 21 may be removed when worn out and a new one secured in place in a short time.

It will thus be seen that no stitching is necessary to secure the upper to the sole, and that the parts may quickly and firmly be put together while the peculiar construction allows the easy removal and replacement of the sole and heel when desired.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which the several objects of this invention are achieved and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the above invention and as various changes might be made in the embodiment above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be 1111361 preted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention. I

claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent zf l. A shoe, comprising an upper, an outer sole, a flexible sole holder having prongs clinched about the edge of the upper, and a serrated flange encasing the edge of the outer sole, and means for securing said flange to said sole.

2. A sole holder comprising a narrow horizontal web. an inner upstanding serrated flange adapted to be clinched about the edge of a shoe upper, and anouter downwardly extending serrated flange adapted to be pinned to an outer sole.

Signed at New York city in the county of New. York and State of New York this 19th day of January A. D. 1921,

HENRY HELFA NT. 

